Thick as Thieves
by foxgloves
Summary: It was seemingly just another gift from Hojo, but this wasn't just any everyday pendant. There was a soul inside and he needed her help. Can Kagome reunite two long-lost partners? Kagome/Kuronue/Kurama
1. Chapter 1

A/N: Hello there! Just a couple notes before this thing gets started. I know I'll get someone saying here and there that the chapters need to be longer, but I'll say right now. **The chapters will never be long. **Anyone who is a veteran of probably knows about the whole drabble/vignette craze that has stolen over the writing realm. Honestly, I work two jobs and am a busy person, but I really do love to write. That said, shorter chapters are a little less ambitious and more manageable for me. Sounds good? I hope so. Secondly, I've never written Kuronue's character so I'll try to write him in a way I deem somewhat characteristic. I've seen YYH before, but obviously he wasn't a main character, so it is a bit of a guessing game. I'll try my best. Anyways, here we go. Expect another update in the next day or so!

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Thick as Thieves

I

* * *

There was something to say about Hojo's tenacity in the pursuit of her affections that Kagome found mildly admirable, but at the same time she pitied.

He just _really_ couldn't read the signs. She suppressed a sigh and an eyeroll and smiled like her mother had always taught her to.

"I got you something Kagome-san," he told her, and then with a shy smile, "but don't worry, it's not anything mummified."

_Well isn't that a relief… _she thought, idly observing the little box that he held in two hands in front of him. She wondered if it was jewellery based on the size of it. Typically those little boxes contained something of the sort, and suddenly she wished it _was_ something medicinal. _He's not going to propose is he…? _Her heart sped up a little out of panic when he held it out for her.

Automatically she accepted the little box, struggling to remember her manners. "Oh, Hojo-kun… you really didn't have to do this."

"You know it's my pleasure, Kagome-san," he countered easily. He looked eager. "Please, open it."

"H-Hai…" she laughed nervously, fumbling with the pretty satin bow.

When she finally managed to get the top of the box off, Kagome stared down into the pendant that lay in the bed of satin inside. _Oh…_

There was something mesmerizing about it. Leaning closer, it depths were deep, so crimson she wondered if there was actual blood encased inside. It seemed to swirl as if there was something alive inside.

It was beautiful.

"Do you like it?" Hojo asked excitedly, leaning in too.

Kagome shook her head to dispel the mystification that had stolen over her the second she'd laid eyes on it. "H-Hai, Hojo-kun, it is very beautiful…" she murmured quietly. _I-I can't take my eyes off of it… it seems… alive._

A blush stole over Hojo's cheeks. "May…May I put it on for you, Kagome-san?"

"Oh, okay…" Kagome agreed, a feeling of possessiveness stealing over her when she handed the pendant back to him. Collecting her thick mane of ebony hair, she noticed the way Hojo's eyes followed the line of her graceful neck, and looked away with a small blush. _I wish Inuyasha_ _looked at me like that…_

Hojo clumsily clasped the pendant around her neck, stepping away and letting it fall against her chest. Hanging right beside the shards of the Shikon no Tama, Kagome gasped when a deep pulse surged in her chest, streaking at lightspeed through her veins down her spine, exploding down her arms and legs into her fingers and toes.

_Youki…?! _She thought with wide eyes, her vision going a blinding white. _What is this…?!_

Then her vision blurred, the blank canvas in her mind swirling, taking form, and the last thing she saw was a dark figure. Shrouded in shadow, indigo eyes gleamed. A seductive smile.

_"Kagome-san!"_


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hello again everyone! Okay, first thing! Wow! I'm so surprised by the reception I got right off the hop here! Thank you all so much! I was so impressed and humbled that I just had to get an update out asap! So here we are! Hope you all enjoy!

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II

* * *

Eyes snapping open, Kagome's lungs filled sharply with air when she inhaled, practically slicing her windpipe. There was a pulse – her heart – loud in her ears, resonating out of her and echoing into the dark abyss that endlessly stretched.

Movement came easily enough when she tried to roll into a sitting position, and it was then that she grasped enough clarity in her muddled mind to really distinguish her surroundings, or rather, zero in on the sensations that she was feeling.

_It's like I'm dreaming._

She was sure she was. It was an odd feeling, not something easily described, only something that could be felt. Something like—

_Being suspended in time. _

Kagome pinched the bridge of her nose, endeavoring to stave off the onslaught of thoughts in her brain. Time in the Sengoku Jidai had taught her to assess her surroundings a little better before regressing into panic mode, and so far so good. She was pretty certain that she wasn't dead; quite possibly just teetering on the precipice of being asleep and being awake.

"What happened…?" she murmured to herself, closing her eyes to concentrate better on the images in her mind. There was Hojo. He had given her a gift—

Kagome momentarily forgot about her current state of affairs and winced. _I'm really giving that guy the wrong idea…_

Turning her thoughts back, she paused as more memories began to take form. Yes, a gift. But what?

A little box and a satin ribbon—she'd opened it. In her eyes she was suddenly seeing colors.

Crimson. Indigo. Black.

"That youki…" she whispered, looking down awkwardly at the pendant that lay against her chest. Gently, she curled her cold fingers around it.

Enclosed in her palm, it warmed. A tingle ran down her spine. It wasn't quite as intense as the first time, albeit she could feel it.

Kagome licked her lips, heart pumping, picking up steadily—hammering. _Something… someone… is here. _

Slowly, unsurely, she rose to her feet; simply standing in darkness. Every hair on her body was standing on end.

"W-Who's there?!" The miko turned around fast; pretty sure she'd given herself a slight bit of whiplash, and wishing her voice had sounded a lot more assertive instead of the girlish squeak she had produced.

But there was no one.

_What is this?! _Kagome grasped at answers desperately, despite knowing there were none. She felt tears prick the corners of her eyes and shook them away. Again she went back to the pendant. _Did it react with the shards? _

"Quit hiding like a coward!" Taking a step back, prepared to turn around again, she froze when a whisper of warmth tickled her neck. Ironically, it made her go ice cold, blood freezing in her veins.

Squeezing the pendant, Kagome swallowed hard. "W-Who are you...?"

An arm snaked around her waist and pulled. She fell back against something solid.

"Eep!"

A voice drawled in her ear; liquid silk. In any other situation she would have swooned. Youki flared, enveloping her and her knees went a little weak.

"Are you scared?"

Kagome fought for breath against the sinister and dare she say it—think it—seductive energies that were coiling around her—exploring her. "Do you want me to be?" she gritted out between her teeth, fingers clambering beneath her uniform to clasp protectively around the shards of the Shikon no Tama.

Her hair was gently brushed away, exposing the nape of her neck. "It is…exciting. I haven't had any fun in a long time, you see."

When she made a move to pull away, the arm around her tightened, a hand coming to sprawl across her stomach to keep her in place. "What is the rush?" he chastised.

This youkai's hand was _way_ too close for comfort. Kagome squirmed. "What do you want from me?"

"Well, you see, you have something of mine."

_The pendant! Okay one question answered!_

"Look, I didn't steal it!" Kagome protested, squirming some more, "and watch your paws…claws… whatever! If you want the pendant back you can have it!"

A chuckle rumbled in the youkai's chest—a dark sort of laugh that made the miko supremely nervous. "You human girls are so _modest._" A sigh followed, "I am aware you didn't steal it. It has merely come into your possession, girl. I am nothing but a soul trapped inside this dear pendant of mine."

_A soul…? _Kagome blinked at this new information, only very slightly relaxing. A soul couldn't really hurt her could it?

"How can I feel you?" she asked curiously, craning her neck uncomfortably to try and sneak a peek at the youkai who was still holding her.

"I would have to assume that you are a special kind of human," he replied.

And then a clawed hand ducked into her shirt.

"_H-Hey!" _Kagome shrieked. Her face colored and maybe the ungodly decibel took him by surprise because she finally jerked away and spun around to face him, gripping the collar of her uniform closed. Her neck, however, felt… bare.

She felt for the shards of the Shikon no Tama, going cold when she no longer felt them against her fingertips.

"Give those back!"

_How can I get the shards stolen from me in my own dream...nightmare… whatever! Inuyasha is gonna kill me!_

The strange youkai was still shrouded in shadow, so she prowled closer.

"Or maybe… is it because of these. Tell me, how does one come into possession of such an artifact?" he wondered aloud.

Kagome's mind was racing with desperation and curiosity. "Let me see you… and we can talk," she compromised.

The youkai made a noise in his throat, very non-committal as if he was actually considering her offer. "I suppose. You will be helping me after all."

Energy swirled in the tense air, making her toes curl in her shoes and she waited as the shadows began to recede.

And then there he was, casually swinging the pendant and shards around one clawed finger, indigo eyes gleaming at her, the same seductive smile, long raven hair flowing.

Kagome blinked owlishly.

_Oh._


	3. Chapter 3

III

A woman had not looked at him like that for a _very long time._

Kuronue almost couldn't believe his luck. He had been waiting for what seemed like an eternity for an opportunity such as this. It was risky what he had done in the final moments of his life; trapping his soul inside his pendant in order to survive, only to have to wait around for someone else to release him. He had fallen into the hands of a few since his death, but none had proven to be as spiritually capable as the pretty girl with the extremely short kimono standing in front of him.

The bat youkai ducked his head slightly, eyeing her legs under the brim of his hat. _Very short, indeed. Very nice._

Any relations of that kind would have to wait, however. Now that the girl was in his grasp he had no intention of letting her get away. He'd waited for far too long. Being confined inside of the pendant hadn't allowed for any kind of research either, so he was eager to begin his search.

Would Youko even be alive now? Kuronue had no way to be sure. The fact that he also seemed in the Ningenkai based on his last few owners was a bit of a nuisance as he'd have to find some way to return to the Makai upon his release. _So much to do, so much to do, _he thought with a pout.

The girl was still blatantly checking him out, however she seemed to have regained some kind of cognitive function and she tossed her head, her eyes looking a little less glazed. Her posture straightened, and he supposed she was trying to sound authoritative, but it fell more than a little short.

"Look, I _really _need those shards back," she pleaded pathetically, making no move towards him.

Kuronue cocked an eyebrow at her, still continuing to swing the chain with the vial around his finger. "And why is that, hm?"

She looked pained, almost compelling him to laugh.

"How about a barter?" she attempted again, "you can have your pendant back and I can have my shards! Everyone is happy!"

Her insistence was intriguing and Kuronue turned his attention to the pink shards glinting up at him. "What exactly are these, girl?" he inquired again, this time more seriously. The more he scrutinized them, the more he felt _something_. A subdued energy emanated from the little bottle.

Her features melted into a confused expression. "You really don't know what those are?" she asked.

Kuronue glanced at her dismissively. "I have made that clear, girl," he muttered.

"What kind of youkai doesn't know about the Shikon no Tama?" she wondered more to herself than to him, tapping a finger against her lip, and then her eyes flared wide and she clapped a hand over her mouth.

"What did you say?" Kuronue said sharply, stepping towards her, her apparent slip-up really arresting his attention. Mid-swing he caught the vial in his hand. _Can it truly be that damned jewel? Who is this girl? An artifact sought after by so many… _He wondered how he hadn't realized it the second he'd laid eyes on it.

There was panic in her gaze. "Um… nothing!" she backed away.

Kuronue caught her arm, hauling her so temptingly close they were nose to nose. She laughed meekly and bit her lip.

And he was for the briefest moment captured by that innocent gesture. He looked down at her plump lips. It had been a long time… Kuronue leaned in closer. She sucked in a breath. "W-What're you doing—" she started.

Then she seemed to turn into a ghost in his grasp. Looking down he was grasping air and she was disappearing before his very eyes in wispy tendrils of shadows, fading away fast.

"W-What's happening?!" she exclaimed, reaching for him. "My shards!"

_Damn it. Looks like this will have to wait until next time. _Making a last second decision, Kuronue tossed the shards and pendant back to her which she barely caught, resolving in due time that he would take possession of them again.

"You're waking up," he drawled, noting her surprised look, and then there it was; just what he was looking for. And he knew he had her in that moment.

Curiosity.

Kuronue smirked darkly. _See you in your dreams, girl._


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Hey everyone! As always, I wanted to let you all know how much I appreciate your feedback. This one is actually a tad longer, so I hope you enjoy it… and what it is inherently leading to.

IV

When her eyes fluttered open, Kagome was immediately on her guard, remnants of her 'dream', of that obscure, beautiful youkai fresh in her mind like fresh paint on a canvas. _The shards! _Her fingers immediately went to the vial around her neck and when she felt them, relief nearly turned her bones to water. He had taken them from her, and then given them back, and yet the chain wasn't broken, as if it had remained around her neck the whole time and never been yanked off. A pensive look marred her features at the anomaly. _A manifestation then? _She wondered. It sort of made sense. In a dream could he really take anything from her?

_He felt so… real, though. _Right now, with her thoughts all jumbled up she could barely think. Every time he'd touched her, and he _had_, she remembered with a small blush rising to her cheeks, she had felt it like she'd been awake.

"Oh, dear! You're finally awake!" The voice broke her out of her reverie, and the miko finally tuned in to her actual surroundings instead of being wrapped up in her own head, taking in the bleak white walls around her. She was lying down, hearing an annoying crinkling every time she moved. _Paper?_ Pushing herself up her elbow, she realized she was stretched out on a doctor's table and turned towards the direction of the speaker.

It was a middle-aged woman with a kind face. _The school nurse, _she realized… and blanched. _That youki was such an overload that it knocked me out. Hojo must have brought me here. _As if people didn't think she was weird enough already with all her alleged deadly illnesses keeping her out of class, once word got around about this they would be avoiding her left right and center. To some degree it worked in her favor, however; made the whole hoax a little more credible.

"You've been out for a while," the nurse remarked, coming to Kagome's side when she fully sat up, hovering there. "Are you alright, dear?"

"I think so," Kagome replied, wishing more than anything that the lady wouldn't ask too many questions about her sudden collapse. "It's just my, er… vertigo."

"Ah, yes, vertigo can be quite a nuisance. Never quite know when you'll have an episode," agreed the nurse with a judicious nod. "Are you well enough to go home? You can stay here as long as you like."

Kagome pondered the question. She felt fine. _Physically, anyways. _Her mind on the other hand was going absolutely haywire. "I think I'm okay. I'll be fine to go home now, thank you." Swinging her legs off of the table, she settled to the ground, pausing just to be sure she had found her equilibrium.

There was a chair in the corner where she saw her book-bag loyally waiting. Right next to that was a small hand-washing station. As she grabbed her bag, she caught her reflection in the small mirror right above the stainless sink, and her eyes settled on the pendant that still adorned her neck. In her mind's eye she could see the youkai; remembered his indigo eyes. Gingerly, her fingertips brushed it. _Who are you? _She wondered. _And how did you become trapped inside?_

"_You will be helping me after all." _His silky voice gave her a shiver as it echoed in her thoughts.

Her eyebrows furrowed. Did he want to be released from the pendant? It made sense, but Kagome knew she had to tread much more carefully from now on. _More than carefully. _

"Dear? Are you sure you're alright?" the older woman inquired behind her.

Kagome turned away from the sink and her reflection with a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes; her mind somewhere else. This newest mystery, this newest wrench in her incredibly paranormal life was consuming her thoughts. "Just fine! I'll be on my way now!" she squeaked, attempting to look lively as she skittishly hurried out of the room.

Outside, Kagome clambered to remove the pendant from around her neck, expelling a long sigh, a headache wriggling itself in between her eyes. It wasn't as if she thought by removing it that the nameless youkai would inexplicably axed from her thoughts, but she needed to focus and think up a game plan.

Carefully, she tucked the pendant into one of the compartments of her bag for safe-keeping, patting the flap down securely, and then geared towards home. Crowds of students were filing out of the school, a bustling atmosphere of laughs and gossip creating an almost soothing background noise as she meandered across the campus, her contemplations once again sweeping her away to another place.

_I can't believe how careless I was being, _she berated herself, her jaw set tight. _Has the Sengoku Jidai taught me nothing? _Her fists clenched out of frustration. She was incredibly relieved that the youkai hadn't been able to literally steal the shards from her, but it was no excuse. As the guardian of the jewel she couldn't afford to have them tampered with, much less stolen, even in her own time where threats to the Shikon were perhaps not as apparent, but nonetheless still real.

It made her wonder.

_Can—do—youkai still exist in this time? _

There had been the Noh Mask and the Tatarimokke, but other than that the miko hadn't experienced any other supernatural entities in her own time. Now, however, with the pendant, she was starting to think otherwise.

Too many questions… and no answers.

_He has answers… _Kagome bit her lip, considering. She was curious; that she couldn't deny, but it was a dangerous gamble that she didn't know if she had any business in taking. _I know nothing about this youkai. He didn't seem to want to hurt me, but I can't trust him not to. I have my obligations in the past… Naraku is quiet now, but that is how he moves. He'll be planning something for us soon. Can I really be selfish enough to get wrapped up in the mystery of a demonic pendant? That youkai said that I would be helping him…whatever that means. But how can I know the second my back is turned he won't steal the shards?_

Kagome didn't consider herself to be the prejudice type. Many of the alliances she had in the past were youkai, so she knew their species were capable of being trustworthy. In fact, the more she considered it, the more she realized that mostly every one of them had tried to kill her or kidnap her at some point. Nevertheless, that was a pretty feeble excuse to go visiting that youkai once again…

_Mou, _she lamented, slapping her hand over her eyes and shaking her head. _I'm going crazy! I won't be able to rest until I know. I'm practically making up reasons to see him again…_

"Kagome-chan! Wait up!"

Hearing her name being called jarred her out of her inner machinations, and she looked over her shoulder to see her three school-friends rushing towards her.

Eri reached her first, folding at the waist with her hands pressed to her knees while she caught her breath. Yuka and Ayumi quickly followed up. "Kagome-chan! We heard that you passed out! Are you okay?!" they all chorused at the same time. Other students who were walking by stared, leaning in to each other and whispering as they passed.

Kagome blanched. "I'm fine, guys!" she stressed, waving her hands nonchalantly, more than uncomfortable with the way people were looking and how her three friends were crowding around her. She shrunk away.

"We heard that Hojo brought you to the nurse, tenderly cradling you in his arms!" Eri practically had hearts in her eyes, hands clasped in front of her. "How romantic, isn't it girls?"

_Please spare me… _Kagome inwardly deadpanned. This whole Hojo situation needed to be dealt with. _Soon._

Ayumi cut in. "Are you sure you're okay, Kagome-chan? What kind of illness is it this time?"

The miko shot her a grateful look, thankful the conversation had been steered away from Hojo, and told them the same excuse she'd told the nurse. "Oh, just my vertigo acting up! Nothing to worry about!" she laughed awkwardly, still waving her hands.

They all nodded. "I don't suppose you can still come with me today then?" Ayumi asked carefully.

Kagome wracked her brain. "…Come with you…?" she hedged sheepishly. _What is she talking about?! Mou, I can't keep track of anything these days!_

"My Biology Meet at Meiou High, remember Kagome-chan?" the other girl looked at her earnestly, "but if you don't feel well…"

The reminder had Kagome vaguely recalling something of that nature… and privately she sighed, her head drooping. _A biology meet… really? _

Truthfully, it was the last thing that she wanted to do, however there was this nagging thing called guilt that was really quite annoying, and she summoned up enough resignation to follow through. _Ayumi-chan is always letting me borrow her notes anyways… it's the least I can do. She doesn't really ask me for much._

Kagome rearranged her features into a bright smile. "Of course, Ayumi-chan! How could I forget? I'll still come with you! When is it again?"

Ayumi looked at her watch. "In an hour."

"I guess we better get going then," she replied, already tired. _Today is shaping up to be a long day… As if I don't have enough homework for the next century. And who knows when Inuyasha will be coming to get me. Three days is never three days._

They said their goodbyes to Yuka and Eri, branching off in a pair towards the nearest bus stop, when her friend made a remark.

"I wonder if we'll see _him," _she said, giving off nearly tangible waves of excitement.

_Him? _Kagome sent her a sidelong glance curiously, "Who is 'him'?"

Ayumi had a dreamy look on her face. "Shuichi Minamino, of course!"


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I'm baaaad. I've kind of been avoiding this for a few days. The story is coming together in bits and pieces in my head, but it seems hard to write, if that makes sense. Nonetheless, I'll persist. As always, thank you to everyone who took the time to say a few words about the story. I'm not a huge stickler when it comes to reviews – I'll never put a limit on how many reviews I want to receive in order to update. I write for myself just as much as I write for all of you. They are helpful and appreciated, though.

On another note… the pairing. At this point, I'm not totally sure. I'm not a huge fan of Kagome/Harem sort of scenarios, even just a threesome. It seems… weird to me, for her character anyways. I'm very torn. Kurama/Kagome is my OTP; I truly love it, however Kuronue/Kagome is relatively scarce and unexplored. For now, I'll just see how the story progresses and I hope that is a satisfying answer for now. Feel free to let me know your vote! Thank you everyone! This chapter was inspired by one of the episodes in the Chapter Black arc. It's a bit of a silly chapter, but I enjoyed writing it nonetheless.

V

Kami, this was so _boring._

Kagome hid a yawn behind her hand and tried to stay awake and appear somewhat engaged, internally steeling her resolve. It was true that she owed Ayumi this favour out of some moral dilemma – but this was honestly just torture. _Next time I'll just take her for ice cream or something…_

The miko was slowly getting used to the internal conflictions that plagued her. She hated to lie to her friends on a daily bases. They were all good people, albeit she didn't expect them to be able to understand what her life truly was. It was almost unbelievable to her at times some of the things she had seen, some of the things she had experienced. It worried her at times, though she never spoke to anyone about her insecurities. She felt at times that among her group, it was her obligation to be the positive one in most often somber times, so she kept quiet. _Should I end up being sent home… will I be able to live this kind of life? _All things paranormal were so embedded in her now, how would normalcy appease her? It was a welcome reprieve right now, to get away from all of the fighting and the hardships, but Kagome could almost guarantee she would miss it should it ever be taken away from her.

_My heart is there… _she testified to herself with a pensive frown.

Just then a shadow fell over her where she sat situated on the bleachers. Leaning back, she peered up into the face of a boy garnered in the magenta pink uniform of Meiou High. "Uh…" she glanced left and right, wondering if perhaps he meant to talk to someone else, but his attention seemed solely focused on her.

He propped a leg up right beside her, nearly stepping on her skirt where it slightly flared out. She tucked herself in self-consciously. "Can I… uh, help you?" she queried, nervously tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"You come to biology meets often?" he inquired, a certain suaveness in his voice that was terribly, wholly contrived.

_He's not… _she started to think, blanching on the spot… _going to hit on me is he…?_

Kagome leaned around him, desperately searching the crowd of students in the auditorium for Ayumi. She could see her talking to a group of boys huddled around her project for the fair. The girl was coquettishly ducking her head and laughing at anything and everything that the boys said to her.

_Is this a biology meet… or some kind of science-nerd dating convention?! _She wondered incredulously. Sure, she had noticed that some of the boys had been looking… but more so had attributed it to the fact that she stuck out like a sore thumb in her school's uniform rather than them scoping out potential dates.

Kagome laughed nervously, edging away. "N-not exactly…just here with a friend who is participating… you know, moral support! Oh look, there she is! I really should be going—"

The boy nodded thoughtfully, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "That's too bad. I would love to talk science with you."

Nearly falling out of her seat, Kagome tried to collect herself in this rather awkward encounter, "O-oh…" she responded bleakly, "Isn't that nice…" She made to stand up and he straightened as well, blocking her off.

"You're leaving?" he asked, his face rife with disappointment. "Perhaps I can show you some of the demonstrations—"

"That _really_ would be lovely," Kagome falsely admitted, trying her best to let the boy down gently. As far as potential suitors went, she was more interested in the demonic type. She wasn't particularly trying to be such a snob; there really wasn't anything wrong with the more…intellectual type, but her life was complicated enough and she was barely passing science as it was. "Science isn't really my greatest subject; I'd be nothing but a headache to explain it to!"

He was ever the opportunist. "Is that so? Well I'd be glad to tutor you—"

This guy couldn't possibly be that obtuse could he? Kagome sought to make eye contact with her friend, but she wasn't paying any attention to her. _Ayumi… now is not the time to get buttered up! These guys aren't even that cute!_

Kagome tried another tactic. "If you'll excuse me," she expertly stepped around the boy, "I'm going to use the ladies room."

Praising herself on her cunning as she ducked out of the gymnasium, she expelled a relieved breath and sagged against the wall. She almost wanted to pat herself on the back, but decided against that because it would look more than a little strange if anyone were to happen upon her. She really was too good sometimes. Her success would remain short-lived though, she realized distraughtly. Eventually she would have to go back to get Ayumi, and that boy had been rather persistent, and – Kagome groaned. She'd forgotten her bag on the bleachers too. _Twice the reason to have to go back_. Not only was her homework in there, but so was her mystery youkai. Lamenting her carelessness and the situation all together she decided that she would take a little stroll through the school and hopefully he would move on to someone else by the time that she was back to collect her friend.

She wandered down the empty hallways of Meiou High, her mind drifting back to one of her other predicaments. _What am I going to do about that pendant? _As she mused over it, she didn't particularly pay any attention to where she was walking. It was almost sort of nice to be able to wander aimlessly. She enjoyed taking strolls in the Sengoku Jidai, however usually Inuyasha followed, or sent Kirara or Shippo to keep an eye on her should she run into any trouble. It was a sweet gesture, as she did have the tendency to get herself into sticky situations – she was like a magnet for it, really – nevertheless, the alone time was pleasant.

Time passed quietly and by the time Kagome figured she should turn back, the school suddenly seemed very _big_.

And she suddenly felt very lost. What way had she come again?

Turning back, Kagome travelled back down the straight expanse of the hallway until she came to a fork. Rubbing her head, she back-tracked in her head. _Was it right or left? _Shrugging, she chose left and wandered down the new hallway. Regardless of whether it was the right direction she could always just go the other way, as tedious as the notion was.

Coming up on another corner, she was half-way around it when voices registered in her ears and down at the other end of the hallway three boys ambled towards her, so far ignorant of her presence, with what looked like their display from the meet carried between them.

_Oh, perfect, I can just ask them! _She thought, starting to call out and her eyes nearly bulged out of her head when she recognized one of them as the boy from earlier. _Uh, maybe not! _Scrambling back around the corner, she peeped around the wall.

He looked up and she jerked away, not entirely sure if he'd seen her—

"Hey! Wait!" Kagome heard his voice echo down the corridor.

_Why me! _She lamented, quickly taking off the way she had come, walking fast, then breaking out into a full out run. The hallway was lined with classroom doors and by this time she suspected that they would be locked up for the day, but it wasn't a completely useless idea. All she had to do was duck inside of one, wait until they passed and she was home free.

The first few were locked as she assumed they would be, making her nervous as she felt her time running out. They had all seen which way she'd gone; just another minute and she'd be cornered. One after the other the doors were unlucky, and when she came to the last one, her hand hovered over the doorknob.

_Please be unlocked! _Grasping the handle, she turned it, excited when it made a full rotation, and then abruptly it opened itself and she fell forward into the classroom.

"G-Gah!"

Falling flat on her face, she groaned into the floor. _What the— _Last she checked, doors didn't really require that little of force…

Someone cleared their throat behind her, and the miko peeled herself off the floor, turning her head.

A boy stood, his hand circled around the doorknob, the other hand in his pocket. Scarlet hair tumbled over his broad shoulders, emeralds eyes pursuing her with a mixture of amusement and curiosity.

"Miss—" he started.

Kagome sprang up. "Close the door!" she yelped. Her hand covered his over the doorknob, and she felt a spark lance up her arm as she closed it a little louder than she had intended. _What was that…_ She inhaled deeply a few times in an endeavor to slow her rapidly beating heart, trying to focus on the fleeting sensation she had just felt, but it already seemed to be gone.

Only to have it kick up again, when she looked back at him…and stopped.

_Oh… my._ Her thought processes grinded to a halt.

Never had a boy ever looked _so good_ in pink. It should've clashed terribly with his lovely red hair, but he could have worn a garbage bag and still have been disturbingly beautiful.

He arched an eyebrow at her.

Kagome felt the weight of his gaze on her and she looked away uncomfortably, her mind working for something to say to break the heavy silence. "Uh… sorry about that," she finally managed, pushing a hand through her hair. Her adrenaline levels were finally beginning to come down and now she just felt awkward.

"Can I ask what you're doing?" he replied, those eyes sweeping over her. "You obviously don't go here."

"Hiding," Kagome answered vaguely.

"Hiding?" he hedged, watching her every move as she cracked open the door and peered out. Tension melted away from her taut back and she sagged against the doorframe with a sigh. He hadn't exactly expected the intrusion into the classroom and his curiosity was piqued.

Her blue eyes sought his when she glanced back over her shoulder. "There was this boy from the biology meet who was a little bit…persistent."

"And he chased you all through the school?" he questioned archly, hiding his small smile with a deftly placed hand.

Kagome's cheeks heated. _I look like such an idiot right now. _"My friend was participating," she expounded, huffing at being made fun of by the stranger, "Anyways, it's not important. I'm sorry to have disturbed you. I'll be going now," she offered a quick bow, and darted out.

The boy blinked at the spot where the girl had just stood. _What in the world…_

Slowly, Kurama passed through the door and stepped out into the hallway. She was already half-way down, where she abruptly stopped short, seemingly changing her mind and turned back. He lingered in his spot as she trekked back, head down.

"Um…" she toed the ground meekly with her shoe, "Can you tell how to get back to the gym?"

For an encounter not involving any kind of supernatural entities… he was mildly intrigued by this human girl who had just literally crashed into his existence.

She looked up at him, a pretty blush staining her cheeks, and they stared at each other. _Blue eyes… how unusual. _He studied her some more… and something felt… different. The kitsune couldn't quite place it; something in her aura. Her scent was clean—pure. And when she had touched his hand… it was an odd, sparking sensation that felt like rubber bands snapping on his skin.

Kurama offered a disarming smile, his expression never betraying his working mind. "I was just heading that way." Really, he wasn't. It was the exact opposite way he had intended to go, leading to the north entrance of the school rather than the south, but curiously, he found himself wanting to be in her presence for just a little while longer.

Tentatively, she smiled back and they both started off in silence.

It remained that way for some time, the only sound in the hallway being their shoes lightly scuffing the floor. The girl was stealing curious looks at him out of her peripherals, as he stared coolly ahead with his hands in his pockets. Her behavior was amusing; unlike any human girl he had ever met. Integrating himself into the Human World was easy enough he supposed, but he found humans to be mercilessly boring at times.

"Uh…" she began, "I'm Kagome Higurashi," she dropped her head again in a bow as they walked.

_Kagome. _Kurama doubted he would see her again after this, but he tucked it away into his memory. "I am Shuichi Minamino," he introduced himself.

An enlightened look passed across her pretty features and she scanned his face again. "No wonder…" Kagome murmured softly to herself with a secret smile. _So this is Shuichi Minamino… no wonder Ayumi was so giddy. _The boy was incredibly good-looking that was for sure… and polite. That was a pretty winning combination in her mind.

They reached the gymnasium, both slowing to a stop at the entrance doors. "Oh, my bag!" she exclaimed, jogging lightly across to the bleachers and retrieving it. Glancing around, it was empty now, all the exhibits from earlier cleared away. Who knew where Ayumi was at this point. Kagome hung her head, frowning. _I hope she doesn't think that I ditched out on her… I'm such a terrible friend. _She hadn't intended to get lost in the school. She would have to call her the second that she got home.

Collecting herself, Kagome crossed the expanse of the gym where Shuichi was still waiting. Coming up to him, she adjusted her bag on her shoulder. "Well, thanks for getting me this far," she laughed softly, with traces of solemnity.

"You said your friend was here?" he asked.

"Not anymore," Kagome sighed, "Looks like the biology meet ended while I was combing the school."

"You're worried she's going to be upset with you," he noted astutely.

The miko looked up at him with surprise at his perceptive remark. "Uh… yeah."

Why was she drawing this out so much? She had just needed him to return to her to the gym, and that was it. Now, they were both just standing there. "Well, um… I guess I better get going home…" she said lamely.

They spent the next few minutes trekking out of the school and across the campus. Passing though the brick entry that marked the name of the school, they both stopped again. "It was nice to meet you, Minamino-san," she smiled genuinely at him, "Thank you for your help."

His hands were in his pockets. He always seemed to be standing like that she noticed. "It was my pleasure, Higurashi-san."

With that, he turned away and walked gracefully in the opposite direction, crimson hair blowing in the breeze.

And curiously, Kagome wondered if she would ever see the beautiful boy again.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Hey everyone! I could have had this out a few days ago so apologies to anyone who might've been waiting. I was totally avoiding it. Finally, though, I managed to plant my ass down and hopefully put out a respectable chapter. I'm trying to make them longer, a few hundred words at a time for your reading pleasure, so I hope it'll suffice. Sometimes that blinking cursor is the bane of my existence. Thank you kindly to everyone who provided me with some feedback about this whole pairing scenario! I'm still kind of working on it, so nothing is really established, but everyone's gonna get some lovin'! I had fun writing this chapter, so I hope you'll take a minute afterwards to let me know what you think. Still feel free, new readers and the ones who may have been following Thick as Thieves from its conception, to pitch in your two cents about the pairing. Anyways, enough ramble, that is if you read these notes, and enjoy this chapter.

* * *

**Thick as Thieves**

**VI**

* * *

Two nights later, a gentle breeze filtered in through the half-open window that typically served as the unconventional entrance into her bedroom for her hanyou companion, as Kagome sat at her desk, nose buried studiously into her algebra textbook. _Studious I might look… but I don't get any of this, _she thought dismally.

Her forehead touched the pages with an inaudible thunk and she heaved a sigh, her concentration finally beginning to stray after hours of hitting the books. "Inuyasha is sure taking a long time to come and get me," she murmured softly to herself… and she didn't like to think about why that could be. Three days he had told her sternly. It was well past that time limit now. Worrying her lip, she pushed away from her desk and rose, gently coiling her back in and out the way that Buyo sometimes did, and lolling her neck side to side to dissipate some of the tension in her body. She wandered across the room to the window, where she pushed it open further and allowed the mild wind to lap at her, playfully tossing her hair as she gazed out into the dark night, imagining Inuyasha perched in the tree outside.

_Is everything okay over there, Inuyasha? _Kagome asked him silently, closing her eyes and willing her thoughts to overcome time and echo in his head and for him to come to her, though she knew that such a thing would never happen.

Behind her, her bedroom door open slightly and a face poked in, the light from the lamp on Kagome's desk illuminating the older woman's features. "Kagome?"

The girl turned, not really startled, but not expecting anyone to come in. "Oh, Mama," she laughed sheepishly, pivoting fully to face her and leaning back against the window sill.

Mrs. Higurashi stepped fully into the room and gently closed the door behind her as not to allow their voices to carry down the hall to the other occupants in the house who were already sleeping. "I could see light under the door," she remarked by way of explanation, "You're up a little late for a school night, ne?"

It sounded so… strange, to hear something like that even though it was so normal, to get chided like that, and Kagome's mouth quirked downwards, very minutely, at the irony. Her mother seemed to think the same thing as she smiled tentatively, kind brown eyes softening. "It's good to have you home, dear."

"And it's good to be home, Mama," Kagome answered readily. And really, it was. Hot showers, her own bed, Mama's cooking—for certain the miko missed all of these things whenever she was on especially long stretches in the Sengoku Jidai. _But now… now just doesn't feel like it's the right time to be home. Why do I feel like something is wrong back there? _

She was never really that good at hiding anything from Mama, and by the way that Mrs. Higurashi's eyebrows were furrowing, so much like the way hers did whenever she was confused or frustrated, or her thoughts were too cluttered, Kagome could tell that her mother could see into her own head and suddenly felt the sting of tears high in her nose. Her shoulder sagged slightly, eyes rolling down to gaze at the floor and a sigh escaping her lips, and softly she could hear her mother's footsteps on the floor, coming towards her.

"Wasn't Inuyasha supposed to come for you already?" she queried, sitting down beside her daughter.

"Yeah," Kagome murmured, her mind on the stagnant well across the courtyard, where time and magic separated her from her other life.

An arm snaked around her, pulling her in and Kagome's head touched her mother's shoulder. Mrs. Higurashi's chin nestled on her crown. "Don't worry about him, Kagome," she placated her. "Inuyasha always comes."

_Mama…_ Closing her eyes, Kagome relished in the comfort that her mother offered, letting it seep in and ease her anxiety, chasing it away like the sun did the shadows. "You're right, Mama," she said, "I guess it's just unusual that he's late. You know how he is."

"I do know," the woman responded, amusement coating her voice. "You fight like cats and dogs the two of you."

Kagome giggled, eliciting a warm squeeze from Mrs. Higurashi as the woman stood. "Go to bed, dear," her eyes flicked to the open book on the desk, "Anymore studying and your brain will turn to mush."

"Hai, Mama," the miko settled, suddenly feeling the exhausting seeping into her bones, making her limbs heavy.

The door closed with a gentle click, and Kagome shuffled over to the desk and closed the book. She gathered her notes together, her writing utensils and set about stowing it all away in her book bag for the next day. _Friday, already,_ she faintly realized. _Tomorrow will start the weekend. _If by then Inuyasha had not come to retrieve her, she would go to him.

Kneeled on the floor and shoving her books inside, Kagome paused with her hand hovering over one of the compartments. The pendant was still inside the flap, where she had stored it the day after her first dream-encounter with the mysterious youkai that was trapped inside, and where she had avoided it ever since. She hadn't worn it since that day; unsure of him, wary of him.

_As I should be._

Pulling it out from inside the flap, the chain dangled in her fingers, the bloodstone spinning round and round like a spider at the end of its silk. In the light from the lamp, it seemed to glow. And Kagome suddenly felt mesmerized by it again, the very same way she did when she had first laid eyes on it. The dark youkai materialized in her mind's eye. A shiver went down her spine.

The decision was made before she even really knew she had made it. She would see him again tonight. But this time—this time she would be more careful. The Shikon Jewel shards would not be accompanying her into this dream.

The pendant and the shards switched places, the vial with her destiny finding a home inside one of the drawers in Kagome's desk, and she fastened the chain around her neck, letting it hang between her breasts, so close to her heart.

She shut the light and settled into bed, turning her head on her pillow, where she stared out of the still open window for a long time, her mind surprisingly unworried; the moon nothing but a sliver of silver framed by spindly, naked tree branches.

And leisurely, her heartbeat slowed, her mind pushed away the world, and she descended into slumber.

* * *

TTTTT

* * *

Time no longer passed the way that it used to when he had been alive and breathing, pillaging with his long-lost partner under the ruddy sky of the Makai.

All that Kuronue knew was that he had been inside the pendant for a long time. Years, months, days, it was no consequence. There were no beginnings or ends. They had collided long ago, and in the darkness, he merely just existed, floating along in endless abyss—waiting.

He imagined the girl. Her blue eyes—unusual for a human, he supposed. She came together in pieces; her raven hair, the graceful column of her neck, long-limbs moonlight pale.

He liked her kimono. And when he had touched her, she had felt warm, her skin supple and silky.

His throat felt like a desert. Strange, he had not experienced thirst in this place before.

Thirst for what? Freedom, Kuronue liked to think and not something of a more sensual nature, but it was dangerous to entertain those kinds of thoughts. He, after all, was relying on a human to secure his liberty. And though time wasn't necessarily passing in the usual way, he couldn't help thinking with a scowl on his mouth that she was taking a fucking long time to come to him.

"Don't humans sleep?" he muttered.

The curiosity he'd seen in her eyes, could he have mistaken it for something else? That he doubted. Curiosity was a force more powerful than anything that he'd known in his lifetime. It could tug and tug on a person's psyche, merciless, until they gave into it. Curiosity was its own entity.

It was possible, he acknowledged, that he'd perhaps scared her away. And he grudgingly allowed himself to think that that would be a damn shame. This one had seemed different. Not that he liked to invest too much into humans. They were quite useless, the lot of them, their own sense of self-preservation infinitely inferior to his own, or even the most pathetic of youkai. Relying on one was actually quite depressing. If Youko could see him now his reputation would surely be in ruins.

That is, if Youko was still alive.

Kuronue's ponderings drifted back to the girl, his articulate mind picking her apart and putting her back together again for the thousandth time. Their first encounter had been short, but his curiosity was piqued. She knew of youkai and he wondered how. Had the two realms collided once again? Was the world now a place where ningen and youkai alike co-existed like they had before the Great Divide? It had been centuries since those days. The only link so far were those shards she had so fiercely tried to protect; and not very well, he recalled with a smirk. It had been too easy stealing those from her and it was exactly why he had given them back. _Too easy._

The Shikon no Tama, the girl had called it. Somewhere in his hazy memories it sounded familiar. He could always ask her, he supposed.

That is—_if she ever showed up._

Kuronue was not an impatient kind of being. After all, thieving didn't lend well to the impulsive. Impulsiveness had not been the reason he had died. As per usual, he and Youko had planned what would turn out to be their final escapade down to the finest detail; the diversion, the infiltration, the escape. It had all been mapped out. How they had been sabotaged was nothing but a fleeting mystery now that he couldn't change, but that still ate away at him hatefully. All that he knew, down to the very core of his being, was that he never doubted Youko. In his dying moments, it was one of the few times he had witnessed emotion in his partner's eyes. He had not been betrayed. It had not all been some ruse for the kitsune to escape with their bounty.

Closing his eyes, Kuronue relived the final moments of his life, the only colors in his now dark existence. Crimson—blood on the leaves—his. Gold—Youko's wide eyes when he had fallen. Light fading.

Light.

Indigo orbs flipping open, it was there. But it should have been fading. There was no light when you died.

But there it was, growing stronger. He watched it scare away the shadows.

And then, there she was.

The girl. She had come back.

"Youkai-san?" she called softly to him. Unsurely.

Kuronue inspected her up and down, hoping to see the length of her delicious legs, but instead they were covered and he was left disappointed to be stolen of his one indulgence. Her new attire was quite ridiculous actually. Horrendously pink, the top and bottom, with yellow splotches everywhere that looked like—

He squinted. _Ducks?_

For a moment, he felt utterly disappointed. This was the key to his salvation?

Then again, the girl had returned on her own volition. That in itself spoke volumes and he supposed not all hope was lost.

"Hn," he finally thought to reply, opining, "I appreciated your other kimono better."

Kuronue stepped towards her and into her light—it was strange how she radiated the way that she did—looking down his nose at her tiny form with a cool expression. Reaching forward, he took some of the fabric at the collar of her odd tunic and rubbed it in between his fingers, lightly brushing her neck. _Fuzzy? How peculiar indeed…_

She made a noise of surprise, stumbling back a pace at his sudden appearance and immediate contact. "D-Don't touch me!" she snapped, steeling him with an impressive glare. One hand fisted at her side, her fingernails cutting crescents into her palm. Her other hand lifted, the index finger pointing at him warningly, "I'm not here to play games, youkai!"

The girl was certainly fierier than their first encounter, he noticed with an inward eye-roll. _Humans_. Pinning her with a steely look of his own, Kuronue drawled, "Then why have you come back, girl?"

"Answers," she answered simply. Looking back at him, her gaze softened, and of all things that she could have offered it was a smile. Gentle, welcoming. Like all the youkai she had befriended in her journey this far, she would approach him he only way that she knew how. With kindness. "Let's start with names, shall we?" she suggested. "My name is Kagome."

Silence stretched between them.

So far the girl—this _Kagome_, wasn't asking for much from him, and gazing into her open face Kuronue made the assumption that this girl probably didn't ask for anything. Foolish, really. She was too open, her favor stolen too easily like those shards.

_Naïve. _How easily he could take advantage of that…

Her eyes were searching, expectant of him to return the exchange and introduce himself. More moments passed and she finally sighed dramatically. Her eyes took on a devilish gleam. "Okay, well then I guess you don't need my help then! Ja, youkai-san!"

With that, she turned on her heel and sauntered away into the dark.

Kuronue almost outright snarled. He _knew_ what she was doing.

"You talk of playing games, and yet you are playing them, girl. Your impudence grates on my nerves."

Unwittingly, he had started follow her despite his inner reservations of letting her know that her little scheme was working. Once close enough, he grabbed a fistful of the back of her shirt and snatched her back against his chest, whispering hotly in her ear. "Don't trifle with me."

"H-Hey!" she squeaked, "You don't need to man-handle me you jerk!" Kagome fought against him, but he was much bigger, much stronger, and it was useless to try and overcome him so she stilled, with a large huff of impatience.

Kuronue realized then that she wasn't scared of him, which was irritating. There had been some fear before, and he had felt in control then. That was gone and she was proving to be an insolent little thing.

He wanted that control back. _Now._

Pulling her impossibly closer, her bottom pressing intimately against him, he reached for her most precious possession. Grasping the chain around her neck, he smirked darkly.

Only for her to laugh when the pendant was what came to be in his grasp. "Nuh-uh! You got me with that once!" she chastised with a click of her tongue. "You didn't honestly think I was just going to barge in here again with my shards did you, youkai-san?"

Kuronue whipped her around so hard her head knocked back sharply and her pupils dilated. _This fucking girl…!_

"Itai…" she whined.

He knew only one other way. The only avenue wherein this unshakable audacity could be conquered and control his once more. "There is one more thing that I can steal, girl."

"Kagome!" she snapped back, eyes burning with defiance. "Not girl! Kagome! Ka-go-me!"

Smirking, he pulled her close, a hand fisting in her silky raven hair.

And then, he slanted his mouth across hers hungrily.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Hey everyone! Yay, I'm happy that I finally got this out. I was gonna continue the chapter, but I figured I could leave it for now. The next chapter, I suspect, will probably be longer than this. Most importantly, however, I wanted to thank everyone for their kind reviews! They honestly do keep me going. A special thank you to **Jane504** who has faithfully reviewed every chapter with reviews that probably rival the length of the chapters, teehee… your insights have actually helped me more than you think. On another note, and really, this is pretty much just a shameful plug, but check out **Caprice**, which is another little venture of mine, if you haven't already. I've noticed a few familiar faces there as well (thank you!), and even though I'm on the fence about turning it into a 'proper fic', it's fun to write and I'm enjoying it, so perhaps you will too. It's my take on Kagome-meets-the-Dark-Tournament. Anyways, enough of me babbling. Enjoy, my lovely readers.

* * *

Thick as Thieves

VII

* * *

When the _still _nameless youkai swept her into his sinewy arms and his mouth met hers, Kagome's brain nearly short-circuited, too many thoughts and emotions lancing through her in a moment that stopped time; grinding it to a screeching halt that shattered her to pieces. She gasped with surprise, eyes flaring and then drooping closed so her eyelashes brushed the planes of her cheeks – a mistake that he eagerly expounded on when he swept his wicked tongue into her mouth, sharp teeth gently nipping her reticent bottom lip as he explored.

The miko's mind swirled hazily.

_I-I… My first kiss… _was the only real coherent thought she managed.

He made a noise in the back of his throat, a low, heady growl, and pulled her impossibly closer, one hand still tangled in her hair, the other dropping to her waist where his elegant fingers clenched the fabric of her pajamas, then slid down and teased the hem of the shirt and deftly dipped beneath to brush his knuckles along her ribs in a caress that made every fine hair on her body stand on end.

Kagome had, like most teenaged girls, envisioned her first kiss many times. In her daydreams, she hoped that it would be good, at the very least. She'd gotten an account of Eri's and of Yuka's, and all things considered the experience had come up more than a little short in the overall wow factor department, according to her friends. They lamented about too much slobber and too much tongue; no passion and no proverbial sparks.

To some degree, she could relate. The kiss was good, more than good—it was great, it was excellent—

Her knees quaked a little and she had to grip his arms to remain upright lest crumble into a heap. Youkai-san certainly knew what he was doing, and a small whimper passed through her lips when he gently tugged her hair so her face tilted up to him, allowing him a deeper entry, a new angle for him to languidly continue his exploration. She was clumsy, barely even responding, but he was patient, pulling away every so often, their lips barely apart from one another before he pressed back, slowly, magically weaving a spell around her.

Somehow, though, in the back of her mind, in a place that she still felt was hers… it wasn't enough to fully surrender. She frowned into the kiss, wondering how she could even be lucid right now under such a seductive assault. _My first kiss…_ The thought echoed in her brain again, bouncing around and ricocheting back to her and settling into her heart with a hollow thud that inspired even more clarity and much derision against him. _My first kiss… _Again and again, the notion circled through her head.

…_utterly wasted!_

Her skin warmed, a sensation she recognized and that sometimes happened when she felt the inklings of anger festering inside of her, coiling low in her belly. Usually it was Inuyasha inspiring those kinds of feelings, but she wasn't prejudiced by any means. She could share her temper with just about anyone. Especially strange youkai who thought it was prudent to steal something important to her.

_Inuyasha…_

Kagome had always thought that he would be her first kiss. She had _wanted _him to be her first kiss.

And now…

It had been squandered on some pervert youkai whose name she didn't even know.

At that moment, the fingers that she had felt tracing along her skin, inched up and she felt the hand close around her breast and give an appreciative squeeze—

And all she could see behind her burning retinas was a certain lecherous monk, a cheeky grin and a red handprint on his face—

Abruptly, Kagome tore herself out of the embrace with a rough shove to his chest, which didn't really budge his muscular body much, however, the luminescent pink of her holy powers swelling to the surface was certainly enough to blast him on his ass.

In an unceremonious heap on the ground of their little dream-world, the light of her energy illuminating the darkness that closed in around them, the youkai stared up at her with a slack jaw, and she stared down at him with her eyes blazing like the spirits of a thousand samurai.

"_Y-You_!" she screeched, positively seething and not knowing what to do with herself and just simply clenching her fists, power still sparking around her, "_Pervert!" _

He didn't seem to be listening to her anymore, his eyes falling to his chest to the smoke that billowed off his attire in wisps, and where two imprints shaped like tiny hands remained. "You…" he himself seemed at a loss for words, "You wrecked my tunic."

"You _stole_ my first kiss!" she hollered back at him as if it was any consolation, the level nearly loud enough to shatter his sensitive eardrums. "I was saving that!"

Without another word, she stalked off into the darkness.

Kuronue hung back for a few moments after she'd been swallowed up into the black, in no hurry to be anywhere close to the raw power that had just exploded literally out of nowhere… and had left him in an indignant pile on the ground. _That wench… _a muscle jumped in his jaw, his teeth clenched so hard he was bound to grind them down from fangs into blunt edges just like that of the infuriating girl that he was dealing with…and just kissed silly.

Gingerly touching his chest again, he marvelled at the turn of events. Lucky for him, he hadn't been purified into a cinder. He hadn't had a lot of experience in dealing with humans, especially ones of the holy sort, but he knew better than to push his luck with this woman. From what he had gathered in that electrifying moment, her powers were mostly undeveloped, and she had little control over them, so perhaps that was why she hadn't inflicted some more serious damage, but he had to be wary from now on.

In the wake of these new revelations, Kuronue felt the inexplicable sense that he'd just encountered an unsurpassable gulf. This girl was his only chance to finally get out of this place… and she was a miko; mortal enemy to all youkai. They were on completely different ends of the spectrum – light and dark – the reason that she so inherently seemed to glow in his obscure world – and that, coupled with their less than great first impressions of each other was more than enough to create a fracture in the already tenuous alliance he was attempting to create. What reason would she have to aid him?

The bat youkai sighed wearily, feeling old for the first time in a long time, as if time had actually passed, and lamented that perhaps he should've been more of a people-person when he'd been alive. Nonetheless, he hadn't become one of the greatest thieves in the Makai on his ability to seduce women. Sex was just an indulgence; a hobby really, but it wasn't a method he generally employed. There were other ways to manipulate, and if she was as naïve as he had originally surmised, then maybe he could do some damage control. It was too bad, though, he barely allowed himself to admit, that it had been more than enjoyable to discover those kinds of pleasures again. He doubted that he would have proceeded much further than he had, he didn't like to think of himself that despicable of a creature as to take a girl against her wishes. With the right reaction, though, any sign from the girl that she was succumbing to his ministrations, he probably would've taken her in a heartbeat.

Gathering his wits, Kuronue meandered in the direction she had stomped off in, her angry aura infringing on the outskirts of his senses. She certainly was _mad. _Idly, he wondered who she had been saving her kiss for, though it really was of no consequence to him. If anything, he could've taught her a few tricks. But he digressed.

A little orb of light was in the distance, and when he finally was close enough to make out her form in the inky blackness, he stopped and she turned to look at him. A glare, a huff, the girl's annoyance with him was rolling off of her in nearly tangible waves and for some reason all of it was somehow endearing and he quelled his compulsion to laugh at her, settling for a blank expression instead.

_Play nice with the miko, _he had to remind himself, waiting patiently to see if she would begin another exchange. _And keep your hands to yourself._

She remained stubbornly silent, but had risen her eyebrows in a _what do you want? _sort of gesture, and Kuronue hid his responding scowl by slightly ducking his chin. He wasn't finding it amusing that by offending all of her apparent sensibilities, he had created some kind of paradox wherein he had to affront all of his just to get her to cooperate.

For kami's sake, the girl wasn't going to make him apologize to her, was she? What was but a little kiss these days?

It was ludicrous, really. He didn't apologize for anything. Never in his whole life. He was a thief. He stole with no remorse. Many had fallen dead at his feet without a single shred of guilt. He was untouchable to feelings and emotions like these. They were a liability.

And most importantly, he didn't feel bad.

"Kuronue," he supplied instead.

The hard glare in her eyes dissipated slightly at the utterance of his name, and he watched the emotions on her face carefully. Interest glowed subtlety in their depths, but there was a wariness still that lingered that he took note of too.

"Huh…" she acknowledged slowly, her eyes still skeptical. Blowing out a breath, she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Was _that," _she waved a hand, hoping he caught her meaning, and sounding wholly exasperated with him, "necessary, Kuronue-san?"

The eloquent way that his name rolled off her tongue, with that spicy tone of irritation, made him shiver. "Probably not," he acquiesced with a nonchalant smirk, "Be thankful you weren't wearing that short kimono, Ka-go-me."

The miko tried to remain nonplussed by his blatant flirting, but there was some tell-tale color in her cheeks and she huffed at him again. "Baka… you're worse than Miroku-sama." The comment was offhand and not made for him, so he didn't bother to have her elaborate, and he chose the moment, with the contention vibrating between them lessoning slightly, to start talking business before her sleep cycle ended and she would awaken.

"How did you come into possession of my pendant?" he questioned.

Kagome came back from her mutterings, blinking at him, his sudden compulsion to have an _actual_ conversation and not all this beating around the bush…or kissing catching her off guard, but she rallied easily enough, though didn't let her guard down. "It was a gift," she replied, and a slight note of embarrassment permeating her scent, "but I'm not exactly sure where he got it from. Hojo-kun isn't exactly affiliated with youkai."

Kuronue didn't particularly care who Hojo was. It was almost annoying all of this excess information that she supplied. He wanted facts, not all of this irrelevant jabber to decipher and sift through. An idiosyncrasy he'd picked up in his living days, he impatiently drummed his fingers. "And your association is obviously tied to that little bauble you carry around, yes?"

His outward disinterest in the Shikon no Tama had Kagome's eyebrows furrowing, before she let her forehead smooth out."Yes," she replied crisply, not fooled. He had wanted the Jewel before, though he seemed ignorant of its nature and the infamous legend that preceded it. For now, though she was curious, it was best not to talk about it, so she changed the subject. "How did your soul come to be locked inside of the pedant, Kuronue-san?" The miko countered. _Who knows when my time will run out? Here I feel like I have no semblance of the sensation of time passing. Any minute now my alarm will be blaring and I'll have to get up and go to school. I need answers now before I go crazy. This has been distracting me too much lately. _Feeling a little more centered, she waited for him to answer her question.

He regarded her evenly. "I died."

_How forthcoming. _Kagome quelled the urge to roll her eyes. "Naturally," she chided, because really that was _quite_ obvious, which made his eyes flash warningly at the tone, "but _how _did your soul end up trapped in here? Souls have the tendency to leave the world and move on into the afterlife." Of course, she knew that wasn't always the case. Souls didn't always move on.

"I suppose that I could have allowed for that to occur," Kuronue remarked in a bland voice, "however, at the time, I didn't feel like I was ready to die."

Suddenly, she wasn't exactly following. "I wasn't aware that you really had a choice in the matter."

"Perhaps not humans," he jibed, another one of those smirks ghosting his lips, and the miko bristled slightly.

"Watch it," she griped, "Or aren't you forgetting that you need my help?"

An annoyed frown turned his lips down, and Kagome uncomfortably noticed that she was _noticing _every little dip, quirk, and twist they made.

"My time was running out—quickly," he went on, "I had very little ki left to sustain me, however it was just enough. The pendant seemed an appropriate safe-house for my soul as it was my most prized possession. In a bid to save my life, I used the pendant as a conduit in which to pour in my soul and it then became trapped inside."

Kagome considered the explanation and nodded, turning it over in her mind. Maybe it wasn't important, but she asked anyways. "How did you die?"

He was settling easier into conversation with the human girl, easier than he actually suspected to, which wasn't particularly unsettling, but it was curious. Kuronue crossed his arms over his broad chest and continued on with his story, unaffected by the memories. "I was once a great thief. Alongside my partner our skills were unparalleled. He was even greater than I. Everything was drawn out to the finest detail, however on the night that would turn out to be our final raid; I died because of that very pendant around your neck."

Her eyes travelled down and she procured it from underneath her shirt, observing it. "It must be very special to you."

Kuronue didn't bother to expound on that. "I lost possession of it. He insisted that I leave it behind but I could not. I went back for it…and found my end. A forest of bamboo shoots pierced my body every which way. I would die in that clearing. Slowly. Painfully. I bled to death."

A haunted look ghosted through Kagome's eyes and she held the pendant, grasped in her hand that had gone a little cold, to her heart. "He left you to die?"

Suspecting that she would come to that conclusion, Kuronue was quick to rectify it before it could take root. "Never. He came for me. It was I who told him to run. To save himself."

"Sounds like you guys were almost like brothers," Kagome remarked softly, tilting her head to the side slightly as she regarded the dark youkai. For a moment, she thought about Sango. _Had things been different, Sango-chan… you would've done the same for Kohaku-kun… _And it dawned on her in that moment, what exactly it was that Kuronue wanted.

Gripping the pendant even tighter, she whispered, "You're looking for him. Well, first you need to get out of _here,_" she gestured into the expansive darkness. "Is that why you need my help, Kuronue-san?

She'd hit the nail right on the head, and Kuronue was more than surprised at her perceptiveness. She'd picked up on the smallest of nuances and he was intrigued. "That is… correct," he mumbled, suddenly feeling like an insect under a magnifying class, the depths of her eyes seemingly another new realm to fall into. She could see right through him.

Gently, she smiled at him, at the same moment that she began to disappear. Expecting it this time, her lips pulled down into a pout. "Mou… school already?" her eyes met his one last time and she promised him, "I'll be back, Kuronue-san."

The last vestiges of her light being consumed by darkness, Kuronue remained for long moments afterwards. It was dangerous to allow himself it, but for the first time in a long time he felt hopeful. _Perhaps… _he pondered, _first impressions are not always what they seem. _


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **Hey all! Sorry that it's been a couple weeks since I've updated, but here it is. I'm happy to say that these are getting progressively longer; I'm trying my best. Thank you all so much for the kind reviews! I can't believe that we're almost at 100. Anyways, so far this has been my favorite chapter to write. I had it planned one way, but decided to change things last minute, so things might get drawn out a little bit longer, but if you guys want a threesome, I've gotta give Kagome some alone time with each. So, without further adieu, here's chapter 8, and as always, I hope that you enjoy it.

* * *

**Thick as Thieves**

**VIII**

* * *

Kagome was mildly aware of the phone ringing as she scuttled around the kitchen with a half-eaten piece of toast crammed into her mouth. Neatly tied with a soft pink cloth and waiting on the gleaming counter-top, she snatched the bento her mother had packed her earlier that morning, waving haphazardly at her grandfather who sat at the kitchen table, full of his own breakfast and perusing the paper.

"Brr Grrrrrmps!" she bade farewell around her breakfast as she flew out of the kitchen.

"That girl…" he muttered, blinking after her, "Always in such a rush…"

_Okay! Homework, lunch, little brother… ah! _Kagome huffed as she shoved her feet into her loafers, tapping the toes against the floor to make sure they were on securely. "Souta!" she called from the genkan, "Are you ready? We're gonna be late!"

"Coming!" his voice resounded back. Sliding across the floor and into view, he made an awkward hop on one foot to keep his balance before he bustled into the small space to put on his shoes.

Despite her frazzled morning, she was in good spirits, which was much warranted after a week of her thoughts constantly being weighed down by her latest, _perverted, _she was coming to find with an errant twitch of her eyebrow, acquisition. She didn't think it was possible to get anything done when she was sleeping, but she had finally gotten some answers. There were more questions, of course; Rome wasn't built in a day, albeit, having a starting point to finally grapple at left her feeling a lot less tired and more her spritely self. The miko just hoped from now on that he would keep his hands to himself. One pervert, a certain monk she knew, was enough for her.

She hurried the younger boy out the door, running her checklist one more time. The siblings took off at a trot across the spacious courtyard, only to have to stop with no real progress being made towards school when her name was shouted from a distance.

"Kagome!" Mrs. Higurashi waved when the girl turned.

"I didn't forget something did I?" she wondered aloud and Souta shrugged his shoulders.

"We gotta hurry, sis," he implored her, "Maybe don't take so long in the bathroom next time!"

She stuck out her tongue. "I was having a bad hair morning, okay! Just wait one sec, unless you want to go without me? You're old enough to walk to school by yourself, you know," she chided.

Souta mimicked the childish gesture. "Yeah, I'm old enough…" he agreed, but lapsed into an embarrassed looking expression, "I just never get to see you that much anymore." Subtly, his gaze drifted over to the well-house.

Kagome's smile was wide and she fondly ruffled his hair, her eyes soft. "Right. Just wait for me!" she said with a wink. He nodded with his own smile a little wobbly and she quickly back-tracked across the courtyard to where her mother waited at the door.

"I'm glad that I caught you before you left," Mrs. Higurashi said as she ambled up, "Mameha-san just called. Your uniform is ready. I thought you could pick it up after school." She pushed an envelope into Kagome's hands. "That should cover it, dear. Oh, and there's a little extra in there for Inuyasha. The ramen is a little low in the cupboard. You are planning to head back tonight, aren't you?"

Kagome bobbled her head, grateful that her mother, as usual, had covered all the bases. "When I get home," she affirmed, softly adding as she gazed at the envelope, "Thanks Mama…"

The older woman smiled and gently patted her daughter's cheek. "You better go, you're going to be late."

"Eep!" Kagome's eyes bugged as she remembered that her time was ticking and she sprinted away, snagging her brother's hand, his feet almost coming off the ground as he was caught in her momentum, her mother watching affectionately as her children disappeared under the Torii.

.

.

.

At the bell's chime, students spilled out of the school, especially buoyant as the afternoon sunshine welcomed them to the start of the weekend. Kagome stretched her arms high overhead. "Ah, Friday!" she cheered.

Eri snorted. "I can't remember the last time you were here for a whole week of school, Kagome-chan."

The girl blanched. "Ah, well…"

It wasn't as if she wasn't _busy _in the meantime.

Her friend changed the subject. "So what are you planning to do this weekend? You maybe wanna go shopping? There's this cute boutique I wanted to check out!"

A minute frown marred Kagome's lips and her bright eyes dulled slightly. _Oh, you know, just travelling 500 years to the past to save the future. _She wanted to tell her friend yes, sometimes missing those kinds of excursions, but had no choice but to construct another lie and evermore alienate herself. "I wish I could, Eri-chan," she responded, "I had a good week, but I still have a lot of school work to catch up on and I should help Mama and Gramps around the shrine. Maybe next time."

Eri's disappointment was short-lived. "I get it, Kagome-chan," she smiled and patted her strange friend's arm, "Don't feel bad. Maybe Yuka or Ayumi will go. But don't be a stranger, okay? The girls and I feel like we _never_ see you anymore."

Vaguely placated by Eri's ignorance of her actual life, Kagome nodded with a timid smile. "Gotcha," she promised.

At the gate they parted ways; Kagome detoured from her normal route to catch the bus into the more commercial centre of Shinjuku. As she weaved the streets, she almost felt out of place amidst the sprawling metropolis. All around there were shops boasting the latest electronic gadgets, restaurants, convenience stores, posters of all the latest, famous music and movie stars flanking everything. The cacophony of noise around her; traffic horns blaring, music playing, street vendors calling, was more disorienting than she ever remembered it being.

_And Shinjuku is only one of the 23 wards… _she pondered, imagining the past that was widespread as well, but in such a different way. _The more time I spend in the past, the more misplaced I become from where I technically belong. _

Idly, she touched the pendant that for now lay dormant underneath her shirt. _And in all this I found you, Kuronue-san…_

Blinking the thoughts away, she shook her head to focus on finding the tailoring shop as she turned off one of the more bustling streets into a quieter square, which immediately found her relaxing as some of the heavier noise filtered away. Mameha was a kind, older woman who owned a small tailoring shop wherein Kagome had begun going to for uniforms some months ago. It wasn't common for students to get there uniforms this way, as usually the ones provided by the school were enough to get them through the school year… but Kagome's extra-curricular activities saw her ruining more seifuku's than what would be considered normal. To keep any suspicions at bay, as someone constantly as sick as she surely wouldn't need a new uniform almost monthly, her mother had sought out Mameha's services. The comparison was seamless and so far no one had seemed to notice any differences.

Turning her sleeve over, Kagome lamented the look of her clothes. The cuffs of her shirt were more than a little dingy despite her attempts to do laundry back in the past and use the future's more powerful cleaning substances when she made it home. In some places, the fabric was going thin. Really, she probably should've just started wearing her other clothes to her ventures into the past, but mostly the uniform was light-weight and easy to clean. And call her selfish, but she admitted sheepishly to herself that she would rather ruin her school uniform than her pretty sundresses. _These cost Mama money, though… This will be the last one._

She spotted the non-descript storefront and after checking both ways, darted across the road, ducking into the small shop where the door chimed at her entrance. Her eyes flitted around the interior of the place, taking in all the different colors and fabrics that it offered. No one seemed to be around, but Kagome waited at the register, craning her neck around a half-wall that had a curtain strung up, separating the front of the store from the back.

"Mameha-san?" she called.

"Coming, coming!" A woman's voice answered back, and Kagome heard some shuffling from behind the curtain. It was swept back a moment later, and Mameha appeared, rolling a rack with her that garnered many alterations. Among all of the orders a flash of magenta caught her eye. "Ah, Higurashi-chan!"

The girl lifted a hand and gave a small bow. "You look like you've been very busy, Mameha-san," Kagome remarked, peering at the garments hanging. A tag poked out and she could see _Higurash_i in a neat scrawl.

Mameha plucked her seifuku off of the rack, double-checking the tag. "Mmm," she replied absently. "Would you like to try it on before you set out? We'll make sure that everything fits properly." The tailor gestured to the far side of the store where another curtain was hanging. Beside the make-shift fitting room there was a tall, three-way mirror where the floor rose up, a little wooden table where measuring tapes and a plethora of pins gleamed under the bright lights, completing the set-up.

"Okay, sure," Kagome agreed. Mameha removed the plastic covering and handed her the uniform and shooed her off.

Behind the curtain, Kagome undressed and dimly heard the chime of the door as another customer entered the store.

"Good afternoon, Minamino-kun," Mameha greeted and the miko froze as she placed the name. _Him? Here?_

She hurriedly zipped up the back of her skirt and pulled the curtain back a sliver and peeked out. His back was to her, but the flaming red hair falling down his back was significantly familiar and Mameha was beaming as they quietly exchanged words. _He even makes grown women turn into giddy school-girls, _Kagome thought, unconsciously pressing a hand to her fluttering stomach as it tickled in a funny way.

Mameha caught her eye from over his shoulder. "How is it, Higurashi-chan? Come out and let me see," she said, waving her hand in a beckoning gesture as she rounded the register. The boy quickly turned and their gazes met, recognition appearing in his eyes.

"Kagome-san!" he declared with surprise.

The older woman was watching the exchange with interest, and Kagome did her best to rally. "Shuichi-senpai… what are you doing here?" she asked cautiously, but the smile on her face was genuine. Pushing back the curtain and stepping out of the fitting room, Mameha flitted to her side, guiding her up onto the pedestal when she began poking and prodding. Embarrassed, Kagome ducked her chin and from underneath her lashes caught his gaze again in the mirror.

"Everything seems to be fitting well, dear," Mameha remarked, looking pleased. "It could've been let out slightly here," she indicated to her chest, and Kagome's face flamed. "Seems you're becoming more of a woman, ne?"

"M-Mameha-san!" Kagome squeaked, covering her face with her hands. _Right in front of Shuichi-senpai! _

"No need to be ashamed," Mameha laughed, "Most girls would be jealous and the boys don't mind so much, I hear!"

About to erupt, Kagome fled into the fitting-room so fast she burned her tracks into the carpeted floor. Pressing her back to the wall, she took a few breaths to calm herself. _I can't believe Shuichi-senpai is here… I didn't expect to see him again… and I'm… happy to see him?_

_._

_._

_._

Outside the fitting room, Kurama collected his uniform and made his payment to the shameless store-owner who had more than thoroughly just embarrassed the girl he had been thinking about way too much… and who he'd never thought he'd see again.

But… here she was.

"So, you and Higurashi-chan know each other?" she prodded deviously.

"We met recently," he replied distractedly, trying to quell the urge to look over his shoulder. Kagome had yet to resurface and by the way that Mameha was quietly smiling to herself, he didn't want to hang around too long lest she make any more assumptions. He could practically read her thoughts and knew the ideas that she was entertaining, but it would be a lie if he said he didn't want to talk to the girl again. He'd dissected their last encounter a multitude of times, but still hadn't been able to place the peculiar sensations she'd made him feel when they'd touched.

"Ah, and now here you two are," Mameha leaned forward conspiratorially as if she was sharing a secret, "How serendipitous."

_Like fate? _He wondered, not sure that he believed in such things.

Kagome finally emerged from behind the curtain, her chin resilient, but there was telltale colour in her cheeks. Kurama shifted off to the side to allow her to pay for her purchase, watching her purposely refuse to look at him and the corners of his mouth quirked. Idly, he thought that her embarrassment was… charming.

"Minamino-kun tells me that you've just recently met," Mameha warbled, "Isn't it funny that you both see the same tailor? A small world, indeed!"

"Indeed…" she gritted out stiffly.

Purchases made, the boy and girl bowed politely. "Thank you, Mameha-san," Kurama intoned smoothly.

"Yes, thank you…" Kagome mumbled less gracefully.

"You two have a good day now!"

Kagome was muttering to herself as they exited the shop, something about shameless women if he heard correctly, and he gently cleared his throat to draw her attention away from her monologue. "So it would seem that we meet again," he opined.

She blinked up at him. "Yeah…" she replied, as if she was still wrapping her head around their chance meeting. "Forgive me," the girl flapped a hand, "I'm just surprised to see you here." Her eyes were on the uniform that he'd picked up. "You get your uniforms specially made?"

Of all the places, despite its anonymity, he supposed that it was odd, and his reasons were even odder, but he wasn't exactly at liberty to reveal that fighting youkai sometimes ruined his clothes, so he gave her a bland smile and a small shrug. "It would seem that we have something in common."

Kagome looked down to her own uniform. "So it would seem…" She shifted under his gaze, readjusting her schoolbag and the package in her arms. _Commonalities end here. I doubt you're a time-traveller._ "Well… I better get going…"

Kurama reminded himself that he had no reason to keep her in his company, however the need still nagged. _Would you like to… _he wanted to ask,_ what exactly? _

"Oh, the store, I almost forgot!" she suddenly said, not really to him. She turned in a circle, searching for a grocer among the square of businesses until she spied one on the corner. "Perfect!" Turning back to him, she smiled. "Maybe I'll see you again, Shuichi-senpai. It was nice to run into you. Bye!"

And she took off down the street before he could really say anything.

And before he could stop himself, he called her name. "Kagome-san!"

She looked back at him, her head tilted to the side. "Yeah?"

He was at a loss. Not finding himself in the company of girls very often, lest they be Botan, and on occasion Keiko and Shizuru, even he could admit that he was slightly unpracticed with them. And before now, he'd never felt especially inclined to spend time with one.

"Do you… want some help?" he asked, wishing he sounded like his normally more articulate self.

"Oh," she said, seemingly weighing the idea. "You don't have to, Shuichi-senpai. It's Friday; you've probably got other things to do."

Kurama wasn't sure if she was being modest… or if it was some sort of rejection. "You have a lot to carry," he pointed out.

"I'm taking the bus."

"The station is a few blocks away. I can help you."

"I'll manage."

_She's quite… evasive. _Did he make her nervous? Was she still that embarrassed about Mameha's earlier comments? Kurama frowned slightly, ready to concede; anymore persistence and he was bound to come off creepy, when from over his shoulder she seemed to spot something and her eyes bugged into saucers.

"Uhhh… you know what, Shuichi-senpai, I'd love your help! Let's go!" Kagome closed the distance between them and snatched his hand, and again that sensation he'd felt before sparked up his arm, and she quickly hurried down the street.

"Is something the matter?" he asked, glancing backwards and only seeing the crowds that milled about the store-fronts.

They entered through the automatic doors of the small market, and she finally dropped his hand when she realized she was still holding onto it. "S-Sorry." She grabbed a basket and set off deeper into the store with him trailing behind her with curious eyes. _That feeling again… what is it?_ They by-passed the produce section, right past the meat counters and she headed purposely down one of the aisles until she seemed to find what she was looking for.

Kurama came up beside her and looked up at the expansive wall of noodle cups. "Ramen?"

Kagome grabbed cup after cup off of the shelf, stowing them in the little basket until it was nearly spilling over. He was about to inquire again, when he was interrupted.

"Kagome-san!"

She jumped out of her skin, some of the paper cups falling out of the basket, and she looked off down to the end of the aisle where a tall boy in an all-black uniform waved… and groaned. "Mou, I didn't think he saw me…" The boy ambled towards them and she inched away, backing into Kurama's chest who looked down at her quizzically. "Kagome-san, what's going—?"

"Oh, uh… hello Hojo-kun," she mumbled.

Hojo's eyes bounced back and forth between them and her overflowing basket. "I thought that was you outside…" Again, he looked at Kurama. "I'm sorry… am I interrupting…?"

Kagome wasn't really sure what he was implying by that and didn't really want to think about it. The personalities were much different, but she sort of felt like she was standing in between Inuyasha and Kouga the way she often had to when their wolf ally decided to pay them a visit and posture in front of the hanyou. Of course, there were no romantic inclinations between her and the red-head who she barely knew, and Hojo wasn't nearly as boisterous as the wolf-youkai in the pursuit of her affections, but it was all uncomfortable nonetheless. She laughed nervously.

"No, no, not interrupting anything! Shuichi-senpai is a recent acquaintance and we happened to run into each other," she explained, moving away from the boy who she was standing rather close to. "Shuichi-senpai, this is my friend from school, Hojo-kun."

As she made introductions, the boys seemed to be sizing each other up as they bowed, though again, with not half as much self-importance as her companions in the past, but she quelled the urge to roll her eyes all the same. _Men…_

"I recognize your uniform," Hojo observed, "You attend Meiou High? You wouldn't be Minamino Shuichi would you?"

"I did not realize I had such a reputation," Kurama answered, again glancing at Kagome.

Hojo nodded awkwardly at the somewhat cool response, rubbing the back of his head. "Your grades are impressive, definitely. Anyways, Kagome-san, I wanted to come say hello. I haven't seen you since that…incident earlier this week. I'm very happy to see that you were able to make it to all of your classes. I hope this means that we'll be seeing more of you around school."

The girl's expression was subtle, but Kurama was able to pick out the nuances of her body language as she stiffened slightly. _Incident? _And the way that the boy was speaking, he seemed to suggest that Kagome missed school often. Kurama's eyes narrowed as his mind worked. He rarely doubted his instincts, they after all were what had garnered him his reputation back in his days as Youko, and he wasn't going to doubt them now. _There is something about this girl. _

Hojo checked his watch. "I better get going," he announced mostly to Kagome, "I'll see you around, ne?" He nodded his head in Kurama's direction in acknowledgment before he turned on his heel and sauntered off.

Kagome blew out the breath she had been holding, turning her attention to the ramen cups on the floor that had yet to be picked up. Hojo truly had the worst timing. As if Shuichi really needed to know that she had the reputation of The Sick Girl, perpetually ill and always missing class. He hadn't outright said _that, _but she had the inexplicable feeling that her acquaintance would pick up on something. As he'd listened to the exchange, the time-traveller thought that his eyes had looked a little… old.

Kneeling down to collect Inuyasha's precious cargo, the boy joined her. When they reached for the same cup and his hand covered her small one, her face burned and she yanked it away. "S-Sorry," she murmured, pitching herself back to her feet. He rose slowly, watching her juggling all of her load, and gently tugged the basket from her grasp with a knowing look.

"What did I tell you?" Kurama chided.

_He's really… nice… _Kagome thought, feeling her cheeks warm some more. Gods, she must've looked like Mameha-san. If he could turn a grown woman into a puddle of goo, she was a complete goner.

Nevertheless, she conceded. "Okay. Thanks. I just have to grab one more thing."

They combed the candy aisle until she found the last item on her list, adding a couple boxes of different flavors. _For Shippo._

"Pocky?" he quirked an eyebrow.

She flushed. _He must think I have a ramen addiction and an insatiable sweet-tooth. _"That's not all for me, you know, in case you're wondering."

He hummed, non-committal, as they made their way to the register and Kagome paid with the last of the money that her mother had given her. As they exited the market, Kagome took the time to study him out of her peripherals as they walked towards the bus station. He was quiet again, much like how he'd been when they first met. He walked with an air of confidence, but he wasn't overzealous or arrogant. It was clear to her now why he had such a following with the ladies.

_Look at me… I'm no better than all of the fan-girls. I'm practically drooling over this guy… _She didn't know why she thought of Kuronue then, but the memory of his lips on hers seared her mind and she directed her gaze to the sidewalk so Shuichi wouldn't see her expression. She was pretty sure she knew what attraction felt like; the dark youkai had showed her that, and if she was being honest to herself, she was feeling the same thing now as she walked abreast the handsome red-head.

The blocks passed under their feet, and before she knew it, the busy bus terminal opened up before them. A sense of déjà vu settled over her, and she knew their time together was coming to a close.

A bus pulled into the station, her bus, and she gathered her groceries from him, the air turning awkward again like it had that day they'd found each other in the school.

"Perhaps I'll see you some time soon," he spoke first.

Kagome nodded, saying the first thing that came to mind. "I'd like that."

And she didn't just wonder if that would be true; she wanted it to be.

Boarding the bus, she settled into one of the seats, watching him out the window until it pulled away and he was a blur in the crowd.


End file.
